President Donald Trump is "seriously considering" granting a pardon to Sean "Diddy" Combs ahead of the rap mogul's sentencing in October, following a partial conviction in a high-profile federal case. The prospect of clemency has escalated from speculative chatter to what insiders call "an actionable event," according to multiple individuals familiar with White House deliberations.
Combs, 55, was acquitted earlier this month of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy but was found guilty of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. The maximum sentence for the convictions is 10 years, and sentencing is scheduled for October 3 before Judge Arun Subramanian.
The former Bad Boy Records founder, who remains held at Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center, has repeatedly petitioned for release on a $50 million bond with strict travel and contact restrictions. His defense team, led by Marc Agnifilo and Teny Gerago, filed a fresh motion this week to secure his release during the roughly two-month window before sentencing.
Combs' legal team declined to comment on the possibility of a presidential pardon. A White House official told Deadline, "The White House will not comment on the existence or nonexistence of any clemency request."
Trump, 79, addressed the topic in May, saying, "Nobody's asked but I know people are thinking about it. I think some people have been very close to asking." He added, "If I think somebody was mistreated, whether they like me or don't like me it wouldn't have any impact."
The case has raised questions within Trump's orbit about possible prosecutorial overreach, particularly given the defense narrative that Combs was overcharged. Attorney John Koufos, a clemency advocate who has met with Trump's pardon advisers Alice Marie Johnson and Ed Martin, noted that Combs' partial conviction contrasts with the sweeping racketeering charges initially filed. "Had he been convicted of a RICO [charge], you'd be looking at something different," Koufos said, though he added there was "nothing particularly sympathetic" about the defendant.
Trump, who signed the First Step Act during his first term, has shown willingness to pardon controversial figures in the past, including former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich and ex-Rep. Michael Grimm. The former governor famously called Trump "a great effing guy" after receiving clemency.
Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, a longtime rival of Combs and vocal Trump supporter, has campaigned against a pardon. "Donald doesn't take well to disrespect, and doesn't forget who chooses to go against him," Jackson wrote on Instagram. "He would consider pardoning anyone who was being mistreated - not Puffy Daddy."
Combs, who once moved in the same Manhattan social circles as Trump, distanced himself from the president during the 2020 campaign and publicly endorsed Joe Biden. Their past association, however, included mutual praise and appearances, with Trump once calling Combs "a good guy" during a 2012 episode of The Apprentice.
Trump's renewed interest in the case has emerged against a broader backdrop of tension surrounding his administration's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files, growing unrest among his MAGA base, and his ongoing $10 billion lawsuit against Rupert Murdoch over a Wall Street Journal article tying him to the deceased sex offender.
